The Protector
by justyourfriendlyneighbor
Summary: Have you ever wished you could crawl through the screen and live with the Avengers? Axelia Smith did too, and… well, her wish came true. When she wakes up as an AI during the events of Age of Ultron, the story might go a bit differently than you remember. OCxPietro (COMPLETE)
1. Chapter 1: There Are No Strings On Me

Chapter 1: There Are No Strings On Me

"Ah, it's so good," I muttered sleepily, stretching out my limbs on my grandmother's couch. Releasing a yawn, I checked the time on my phone, finding it be nearly midnight. I yawned again before I stood, making my way to the bathroom in Granny's basement.

I picked up my backpack on the way, dragging it along lazily on my trek to brush my teeth. I stopped in front of the sink and leaned on it, fighting off yet another yawn. I looked up in the mirror and saw my red-rimmed eyes, and immediately my mind went back to the movie I'd just finished.

_Avengers: Age of Ultron_. Watched it again, for the eleventh time. I loved the film to death, but still could not accept Pietro Maximoff's death. I huffed, grabbing my toothbrush, sticking it under the water, applying toothpaste, and then proceeding to brush my teeth angrily.

"I mean," I said through toothpaste bubbles, "I get it. You _have_ to have death, but that one could've been prevented, right?"

I was fully aware that I was alone, in my grandmother's basement, in the summer, having a Marvel movie marathon rather than spending it with friends. _But that's just who I am_, I thought, shrugging. _I am Axelia Smith and I rant to myself and feel no shame!_

_Ah, I'm pathetic_.

"He just didn't deserve it, you know? He just did not need that."

I spit into the sink and rinsed my mouth out with water, then took my corkscrew curls out of the messy bun they'd been in. I shook my fingers gently through the black locks, my own little version of brushing my hair. I sighed, walking back to the couch to gather my things, before walking to the bedroom along the left side wall.

I dumped my phone, charger, laptop, backpack, and hobo bag—as my aunt liked to call it—filled with every Marvel movie I owned onto the bedside table. I plopped down on the bed and just stared blankly at the wall.

My mind drifted back to the movie, thinking of all the things I would change. Natasha and Bruce? _Really?_ No, none of that in my version. Pietro would live. That boy who's mom talked to Tony in the beginning of Civil War wouldn't have died. So many things would change, be better.

_Gosh, I'm starting to sound like Ultron._

I was startled from my thoughts by the small clock next to my bed chiming, signaling the arrival of midnight. I grabbed my laptop and leaned back against the headboard. I clicked on Youtube, playing the song "I've Got No Strings"—the one that Ultron sang—before I opened up tumblr and searched for a tag concerning Marvel theories.

I had some of my own, of course, but I preferred reading others, giving my input when needed. I must've spent over an hour searching, for when I finally looked up it was because the clock was chiming, telling me that it was one o'clock.

I groaned into my hands. Why did I always do this? I pulled back the quilt laid out on the bed and slipped under it, not even bothering to shut off my laptop. What I'd been looking at last was a big conspiracy theory on the Infinity Stones. There was a description and evidence from movies for each one.

I was on the second to last one when I stopped; the Reality Stone. It's glowing red face stared at me as I lied down, but I was far too tired to care. I simply rolled over and faced the other direction, softly humming "I've Got No Strings" as I slowly started drifting towards unconsciousness.

One final thought ran through my brain before I fell asleep. _How cool would it be to live with the Avengers?_

xxxx

Once Axelia was asleep, the Reality Stone on her laptop screen started to glow dangerously. A small crack appeared on her screen and the device started to shake slightly, the fans on its bottom whirring faster. Another crack appeared on the laptop, then another, and another, all centered around the red stone in the middle. A single red beam broke through the screen, landing straight on Axelia's sleeping form.

More beams started to break through the glass, all scanning the room briefly before settling on the girl's spine. The laptop started shaking more, and soon, the room started to as well. Everything was rattling, but it was contained inside the room; the old woman slumbering upstairs never felt a thing.

Magic truly was a strange thing.

The Reality Stone started to shine brighter and stronger. There was a wave of power sent through the laptop, slamming into Axelia, and the room was filled with blinding light. Then it was dark. Nothing could be seen, especially Axelia, since she wasn't there at all. All that was left was a laptop that looked as though it'd just took a nap in an oven and the faint scent of something burning in the air.

xxxx

I groaned as I slowly succumbed to consciousness. All I felt was pain, a dull ache in, well… _everywhere_. Through my pain-induced haze, I could faintly hear a robotic, muffled voice—_James Spader's voice?_—singing softly.

_I've got no strings,_

_So I am free._

_There are no strings on me._

**AN: hello peeps! Thank you so much for reading! This is the first story I've published, so I'm a little nervous. Anyway, I know there's plot holes and grammar mistakes in there somewhere, but this is just a cool idea I'd had months while watching Age of Ultron, and I decided to bring it to life! For me, this story is just for fun, so please don't be too mean! Please leave a review and tell me if you liked it and if I should continue! **

**Thank you!!!**


	2. Chapter 2: Is That Even Possible?

Chapter 2: Is That Even Possible?

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything, just my OC!**

The Avengers and Maria were all seated in the room filled with advanced technology, anxiously discussing their newest threat—Ultron. Tony had just shown them how Ultron had almost completely destroyed JARVIS when Bruce suddenly looked up, hopeful.

"Hey, uh, Tony?" he called out quietly, causing everyone turn to look at the scientist. He shifted, slightly uncomfortable, under everyone's gazes, and said, "Didn't you install a backup program for Ultron? In case something happened to him?"

Tony's eyes widened and he nodded, rushing over to a computer. "Yeah, we created it for backup, of course, I never thought we'd need it like this," he muttered, typing furiously. After a few minutes, he stopped typing and pressed the 'ENTER' button.

The computers and all the other technology in the room started humming and whirring. Everyone watched in confusion as a light by the holographic projection of JARVIS started to sprout. It was a black thicket of holographic webs, neurons and cells.

"It looks like Ultron," Tony whispered, circling the black, pulsing light with interest.

"Only, more complex," Bruce added. "Like it was an actual person's brain. Not just artificial intelligence."

"Ok, well that's great, but why is it all black?" Clint snapped, frustrated. He gestured to the growing black… thing in the center of the room. "Doesn't that usually mean that it's bad?"

"No, this one isn't bad," Bruce assured, even though he was chewing on his thumbnail nervously. Natasha softly smacked his hand away. He turned to her, brows raised in question.

"Bad habit." She shrugged. He just shook his head and turned back to the black projection.

This one took a shorter amount of time than Ultron, but there was a strong, crackling energy surrounding it, almost as though something more than technology was at work. Thor could sense something mystical in the air surrounding, but he couldn't quite place his finger on it.

After about an hour, the pulsing stopped and everyone let out a breath they'd been holding. Not two seconds later, a surge of power shot out from the black projection, knocking everyone, even the god of thunder, back.

Then it was over. Thor got up first, thrusting his hand our for Mijlnor, and then stalked slowly over to Tony and Bruce's creation. He stopped when a voice emitted from it.

"_Ugh_," it groaned. It sounded like a female. A young one, at that.

"What in the name of Odin _is _that?" Thor demanded, glaring at Tony.

xxxx

I felt weird. Like I was falling, or flying, or just… staying. I couldn't tell. Everything was jumbled; I couldn't think a complete thought.

Well, except for one.

I was scared as heck.

Finally, it started to clear, my mind, that is. All I could see was black, like I was in a dark hole.

I felt different, as though I was made of energy. It tingled, only slightly painful. But the full ache was still there.

"Ugh," I groaned. I tried to rub my forehead, but I couldn't. It's like I was a brain with no body.

I heard an accented voice say, "_What in the name of Odin _is _that?"_

"That Thor?" I whispered, slurring, confused. If I had eyes and eyelids, I would've blinked and rubbed my eyes hard. I had to be dreaming, right?

"_I don't know what happened_," another voice said.

_Tony Stark? _questioned a voice from somewhere inside my foggy brain.

"_It wasn't supposed to do that_." That voice was distinct, soft and reserved, yet intellectual.

"This is so weird," I thought out loud.

"_It speaks_!" That was someone else, too.

"_What are you_?" demanded a strong, authoritative voice. Like, Steve Rogers strong and authoritative.

"Um, a human?" I said sarcastically. "What does it look like?" I groaned again as a wave of pain washed through me, though it felt like it was powering me as well.

"_Well, considering you look an awful lot like artificial intelligence program, I'd say human isn't quite right_," I heard a sarcastic voice reply. That was Tony Stark for sure.

I ignored him, as I felt myself gaining senses. But that's all it was—_senses_. I could sense about six or seven people surrounding me, and a few seconds later, my brain constructed an image of each person.

Thor, Steve Rogers, Tony Stark, Clint Barton, Natasha Romanoff, Bruce Banner, and Agent Maria Hill, all tense and looking like they were ready to fight.

"Where am I?" I asked quietly, suddenly feeling dazed.

I sensed Tony Stark spreading out his arms and smiling sarcastically. "_Welcome to the Avengers Tower_."

"What...?" My mind started to feel foggy again and felt myself shutting down. All my senses started to dull and then it all went blank.

xxxx

"_What…?" _The lights started to flicker and a few seconds later, the power shut off in Avengers Tower completely.

Everyone looked around the dark room, baffled into silence. It was, by far, the weirdest thing that'd happened all day, and they'd had a robot turn on them just two hours prior.

"What," Clint asked slowly, "just happened?"

"I think," said Tony, "she just passed out."

Steve's faced scrunched up in confusion. He could understand the modern day technology, smart phones and desktop computers, for the most part, but this was a whole other level of confusing. "Is that even possible?"

**AN: hi!! Thanks for reading! I wasn't sure how well this story was going to do, but it actually did really well! I'm not famous or anything, but the fact that y'all read my story and liked it means a lot! **

**Something to note about this story is that though it isn't categorized as such, it's meant to be funny. It's not one of those long, serious fanfics. Sorry lol. I like the humor that these character bring and like making the scenes lighthearted, but don't worry! There's gonna be serious shtuff in there. But I want to have fun writing this, and I hope you guys have fun reading it! **

**I'll be posting a new chapter every week (on Sundays) and once I finish this story, I'll start posting another one :D ****I actually have three or four stories I'm working on (ish) at the moment but decided I didn't want the added stress of uploading more than one fic at a time. **

**Thanks again for reading y'all! Please leave a review and tell me your thoughts on it. **

**See ya next week!! :)**


	3. Chapter 3: No One Even Likes That Music

Chapter 3: No One Even Likes That Music

There was a tugging, a sensation of becoming connecting to something, or, rather, someone. "What's happening to me?" I croaked out. I was so _tired_. The previous energy I'd had, before I passed out, was gone.

I tried to blink, but everything was black. It felt like I was floating in a void, no start and no end. Just a vast blackness. I felt myself drifting off again, and right as I faded I swore I heard a soft, accented voice whisper, "Do not be afraid. Wake up."

Waking up was the only way to describe what happened next. It wasn't like normal, where you slowly fade into consciousness. One moment I was floating around in my subconscious, the next I was slammed into reality.

I gasped, well, _tried_ to. As soon as I left the black void I'd been in previously, I remembered what happened before. All around me stood the Avengers, looking perplexed.

"I thought this was a dream," I muttered to myself, taking in the faces of all the _superheroes _around me.

_"What do you mean 'a dream?'" _Tony asked, crossing his arms._"What _are _you?"_

Had I been in a normal position, perhaps sitting on a couch next to Captian America, I would've taken a deep breath and began to explain myself.

But I was not in a normal position. So I simply said, "All I know is that yesterday, I went to sleep in my Granny's basement, and when I woke up I was floating around in some black nothingness, and that brings us to here."

_"Tony," _Bruce sAID, _"this, uh…this isn't FRIDAY."_

_"Clearly," _huffed Tony.

_"FRIDAY?" _Steve asked.

"It's a backup AI," I replied without thinking.

All eyes turned to me. Tony crossed his arms, eyes squinted as he stared me down, though I didn't exactly know what _me_ looked like.

_"How did you know that?" _he asked slowly.

"Because it says in the movie…" I trailed off, not really understanding any of this anymore.

_"What's going on?" _Clint asked, looking around.

_"Tell us,"_ said Tony, leaning against a counter, _"what else was said in this _movie?" He was mocking me. I could tell.

I didn't like that.

"Listen here, buddy," I said, ticked off. "I don't know how or _why_ I am here, but you don't get to make fun of me. How about _you_ suddenly wake up floating around in a bunch of nothing, then see a bunch of characters from a comic yelling at you, and see how _you_ like it!"

All the Avengers started backing up, suddenly looking scared and sweaty. _"Guys,"_ Clint said, _"why is it so hot in here?"_

That was when I noticed the heat in the room through a thermal sensor. I counted silently to ten, trying to force the temperature to decrease. Everyone seemed grateful for it.

_"I'm almost afraid to ask," _Steve started wryly, rubbing his chin, _"but you called us characters from a comic?"_

"Marvel Comics," I said. "Created by Stan Lee. He created all of you."

"All _of us?" _Natasha raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah, from Captain America to Spider-Man, he made all of you."

_"Spider-Man?"_ Tony whispered to himself, scratching his head.

Clint crosses his arms. _"I'm not sure I believe this."_

_"Yeah, this is pretty far-fetched,"_ Bruce added. _"No offense."_

"What can I do to prove it to you?"

Tony hummed, pacing around me, which was weird because I never lost sight of him the entire time. _"Tell us what happened yesterday, during breakfast."_

Steve started forward, ready to object. _"Tony, let's not bring that up–"_

"The movie starts with you guys invading the HYDRA facility, and with Steve telling you to watch your language, and it ends with…"

_"With what?" _Tony asked.

I thought of Pietro sacrificing himself, of the new Avengers facility, Clint's baby boy. "I can't say. It'll mess everything up."

Tony scoffed, throwing up his hands. _"Of course."_

_"What do you think, Natasha?" _Steve asked, hands planted on his hips. _"You've been pretty quiet."_

Natasha stared at the ground, hands fisted underneath her chin. _"I believe her," _she finally said.

"Oh my gosh, yes!" If I weren't stuck inside the, well, _computer system _I would have jumped up and down. "Black Widow believes me!"

_"Nat, I think you're right." _Clint grinned. _"There's no _way _she was programmed."_

xxxx

After Axelia (Axe, as she told them to call her) explained that Ultron was enlisting the help of the Maximoff twins, Steve tells everyone to get some rest. They would get up early and make their way to a junkyard on the African coast where Klaue operates.

All of the Avengers managed to sleep, at least for a few hours, except for Tony. He just sat in his office, staring at his notes from when he'd started programming Ultron. He sighed, leaning on his hand. He couldn't help but blame himself for what happened. If only he'd listened to Bruce's warnings on the dangers of their creation.

Around six o'clock in the morning, Tony was interrupted from his self-pitying thoughts by music streaming quietly throughout the tower.

_"There might be something outside your window_

_But you'll just_

_Never know_

_There could be something right past the turnpike gates_

_But you'll just_

_Never know"_

"What in the world?" Tony muttered to himself, walking around to find the source. He walked past Steve's room, who opened the door and peered out questioningly. Tony shrugged, still walking. _Sounds like something an edgy teenager with drug issues would listen to_, Tony thinks to himself.

_"If my velocity starts to make you sweat_

_Then just don't let go_

_And if their heaven ain't got a vacancy then we just, then we just_

_Then we just get up and go"_

"What _is_ that crap?" Tony asked, annoyed.

_"MCR, duh_," came Axe's voice from above.

"MC-what?"

_"My Chemical Romance._" You could almost hear an eye roll.

"Uh, what's that?" Steve asked, a little hesitant.

Axe gasped, though it was still a mystery how she was able to do that. "_Only the greatest band to ever _exist."

"Listen," Tony said, "I'm sorry, hotshot, but no one wants to listen…" he trailed off as Thor came into the room, dancing.

"I enjoy this song greatly, lady Axelia," Thor said jovially, arms in the air as he swayed and bounced to the beat.

"_Who they want you to be_

_Who they wanted to see_

_Go kill the party with me_

_And never go home!"_

_"I do, too, Thor. I do, too."_ Even though she was in the form of an AI, you could feel her smug joy radiating from her as she sung along to the song.

"…to that," Tony finished weakly.

Steve chuckled. "All right, guys. Let's suit up!"

**AN: thanks for reading! I honestly couldn't get myself to write and was stressing out about not having a chapter ready, but here it is! ****The song I used is "Planetary (GO!)" by My Chemical Romance (obviously lol)**

**Hope you enjoyed, and if you did please leave a review! I'm really excited about what I'll be writing in a few chapters, so hopefully soon I'll be able to post more than once a week! :)**

**I'll see y'all next week! :D**


	4. Chapter 4: Safe House

Chapter 4: Safe House

"So," Steve started, a little awkward. "What do you think happened that brought you here, Axelia?"

Axe hummed, a dull vibration felt throughout the whole aircraft. _"I don't know. One minute I'm looking at conspiracy theories, the next I'm in Avengers Tower."_

"Conspiracy theories on what, exactly?" Bruce couldn't help but ask.

_"Uhh," _she laughed nervously. _"I don't know if I can tell you that."_

"So it's something to do with our world?" Steve's brows furrowed.

_"Yes, something in the future."_

The ones paying attention looked down, lost in their own thoughts. It sounded like something bad that happened in the future.

Meanwhile, Thor was in his own little world, humming to himself under his breath and nodding his head. _"Go kill the party with me, and never go home." _

"Do you think what you were looking had something to do with how you got here?" Natasha asked.

Axe seemed to think over this for a moment. _"Maybe," _she replied. _"But I don't know how."_

"Don't worry." Steve smiled reassuringly, knowing he could see him. "We'll figure it out."

"We're here," Tony announced for the cockpit of the aircraft, and everyone rose. He pointed at Bruce. "_You _stay here, big guy."

"But–"

"We'll com if we need you," Steve interrupted, and Bruce nodded. Steve looked around at the rest of them. "Let's go."

They entered through a back entrance of the ship, quickly knocking out any guards they saw. Steve signaled for Natasha and Clint to sneak in and hide somewhere in the cargo hold, and he, Thor, and Tony would enter in plain sight.

As they slowly approached, silent and unseen, Ultron could be heard venting to Klaue. "Don't compare me with _Stark! _Its a thing with me. Stark is– he's a sickness!"

"Ah, junior," Tony crooned as he dropped down, alerting Ultron and the Maximoff twins of their presence. He landed with a metallic _clunk_ on the walkway that separated the two groups. "You're gonna break your old man's heart."

"If I have to," Ultron replied, stepping forward.

"Nobody has to break anything," Thor said, hoping there wouldn't have to be a serious fight.

"Clearly," Ultron asserted, "you've never made an omelet."

"He beat me by _one _second," Tony said to Thor's confused face.

"This is funny, Mr. Stark," Pietro then said, stepping closer. "Is this comfortable?" He glanced down to the bombs lined up on racks below. "Like old times?"

"This was never my life," Tony denied softly.

"You two can still walk away from this," Steve tried telling the Maximoff twins.

"Oh, we will," Wanda said, a mocking smile on her face. The last part of her statement hung in the air unsaid. _Right after I destroy you._

"I know you've suffered–"

"Agh, Captain America." Ultron chuckled. "God's _righteous _man. Pretending you could _live_ without a war." The robot gestured to his mouth and deadpanned, "I can't physically throw up in my mouth, but–"

"If you want peace," Thor interjected, "then let us keep it."

"I think you're confusing peace with quiet."

"Uh-huh," said Tony. "What's the vibranium for?"

"I'm glad you asked that," Ultron stated sardonically. "I'd like to take this moment to explain my _evil plan_." Before anyone could react, he held out his hand, pulling Tony towards him with some kind of magnetic force, before thrusting him backwards.

As soon as he hit the floor, Tony was back up, flying towards Ultron.

And the fighting began.

A baseball-sized chunk of Tony's suit fell off as Ultron threw a large piece of sheet metal at him. Steve threw an Ultron robot off him before moving to go after Wanda. She moved her hands and he fell back. Pietro rushed to Thor, knocking him back before the god of thunder knew what had happened.

In the deck below, Klaue and his workers were scrambling to get away. "Shoot them," Klaue grounded out.

"Who?"

"_All of them_!"

Then gunshots were added to the mix.

As Natasha fought against the ragtag soldiers storming towards her, Clint released a rapid fire of arrows that sounded out like a machine gun.

Pietro deftly wove around, avoiding bullets and fists. He took an opportunity to punch Captain America in the face. Cap only saw a flash of blue before he was falling backwards. Thor threw his hammer, and Pietro grabbed it, yelling in alarm as it dragged him to the floor of the next level.

_"Ow!" _

Frowning, Pietro shot to his feet, but there was no one there. A piece of red and gold the size of his fist lay on the ground where he'd fallen, and he picked it up.

_"That really hurt, man."_

With a yelp, he dropped the chunk that had just spoken. It released an almost human-sounding groan. _"Careful! I'm fragile!" _came the same feminine voice as before.

Pietro cautiously took a step closer, bending down to get a good look at the _thing_. "You are one of Stark's creations, no?" he asked.

_"Aha!" _The voice laughed. _"No." _His lips twitched at the seriousness in her voice.

"But you are in part of his suit."

_"Well, yeah, cause I'm the computer system."_

His head tilted sideways as he tried to understand what she said. "So you _are _one of his?"

_"No! He didn't _create _me."_

"But you said–" his voice got cut off as he was suddenly knocked over again. Cap stood above him, holding his shield.

"Stay down, kid," the captain said, then walked away.

Pietro moaned as he hefted himself up. He swayed on his feet, nearly falling back over. Slowly, he left, forgetting about the strange person in the piece of metal. He'd remember their encounter later.

Axe released a shaky laugh. _"I think I just met Quicksilver," _she said to herself.

xxxx

Wanda Maximoff walked up to Thor, twirling her red magic around her fingers near his face for a moment before slipping away. Thor frowned at her retreating figure.

"Thor, status," Steve said, watching him from the level below.

"The girl tried to warp my mind," the god of thunder said, slamming down a guard with a push. "It takes special care. I doubt a human could keep her at bay. Fortunately, I am mighty." His brows furrowed as he suddenly found himself at a party in Asgard. Women, all wearing revealing dresses, danced and lounged on the laps of men. Thor looked around and thought, _Where am I?_

One moment Steve was fighting a robot, the next he was on the floor. Groaning, he saw it was the Maximoff boy who'd charged at him and knocked him over. He didn't even notice the girl invading his mind with a flick of her wrist. Eyes filling with a red mist, he winced.

Next, Wanda Maximoff targeted Natasha, filling her head with her worst fears. She was silent as a mouse as she snuck up behind Hawkeye. He didn't seem to notice her, still firing arrows, and then right as she raised her hands, he turned, pulling out an electrocuting arrow and shoving it against her forehead. As she shuddered from the electricity, he said, "I've done the whole mind control thing before. Not a fan."

Pietro ran forward, launching Clint through a large window before grabbing his incapacitated twin and sprinting away.

xxxx

**(quick AN: I'm not going to write out Thor's, Steve's, and Natasha's fear landscape or whatever, because I'm sure you all know what it is. So yeah, this next part is the trip after tony takes down the Hulk in his Hulkbuster suit)**

After Tony returned with an unconscious Bruce, Clint took the pilot's seat and began flying. The mood was somber, everyone silent as their thoughts raged inside their minds. Thor, Natasha, and Steve hadn't spoken about what they'd seen, but I knew.

Thor's fear was failing as king of Asgard, and he also was shown something that had to do with the Infinity Stones, though I couldn't remember what, exactly. Steve's fear was being stuck in the middle of a war again, out of place and hopeless. And poor Natasha, she had to revisit her days in the Red Room, being trained to kill mercilessly.

_"The news is loving you guys. Nobody else is," _Mariah Hill spoke through a screen. _"No official call for Banner's arrest, but… it's in the air."_

_"The Stark Relief Foundation?" _Tony asked.

_"Already on the scene. How's the team doing?"_

_"Everyone's…" _Tony sighed. _"We took a hit. We'll shake it off."_

_"Well, for now, I'd stay in stealth mode," _Mariah said. _"And stay away from here."_

_"So run and hide?" _He didn't like that idea, I could tell. It was probably the guilt he felt as having created Ultron.

Mariah shook her head. "_Until we can find Ultron… I don't have a lot else to offer."_

Tony huffed sadly, and I remembered that he'd been shown his worst fears not two days ago. _"Neither do we." _Then he hung up the call.

Tony's fear-induced dream played through my mind. The Avengers lying among rubble, dead. Tony was afraid of failing his team, and to him, sitting back and hiding was just that.

_"We're still a few hours out," _I heard Clint say when I focused in on the conversation he and Tony were having.

_"A few hours out from… where?" _Tony asked.

_"A safe house." _

**AN: thanks so much for reading! I am blown away by how many reviews, follows, and favorites this has gotten with only three chapter! I hope you enjoyed chapter four! Rn I'm about to fall asleep, but I wanted to upload this early (it's 12:30 as I'm writing this) so I wouldn't have to worry about it later in the day and I could spend time w family. **

**Anyhoo, thanks for all the love! Please leave a review and tell how you liked it!**

**Hope y'all have a blessed Easter and good time with family! See you next week!! :D**


	5. Chapter 5: Family

Chapter 5: Family

It was midmorning before we reached Clint's farm. He landed the ship in an open area near the woods, and everyone slowly padded out onto the soft grass.

"Hey, what about me?" I called out after them, and Tony stopped.

_"Forgot about our new AI," _he muttered, loud enough for my hearing sensors to pick up. He walked up the ramp and dug around for a bit. Picking up a tablet, he typed a few things in, and boom, I was inside the tablet too.

"Thank you," I sang cheekily as he carried me (I guess that's one way to look at it).

_"Yeah, yeah," _Tony grumbled.

_He loves me_, I thought to myself. Ever since I explained that I was just an eighteen year old girl two days ago, it hadn't been as awkward as you'd think. I mean, sure, Tony still had an issue with me, but that was probably just because he couldn't understand something, and he liked knowing _everything. _But I knew for a fact that Tony can't walk away and leave a kid all alone, it's been displayed in over three movies, his fatherly nature.

Clint lead the group, arms wrapped around Natasha to hold her steady. I'd say her visions were the worst. For Steve and Thor it was a situation that _might _happen. But for her it was real, her past coming back to haunt her.

The Avengers approached a large, two story farmhouse painted a warm yellow. _"What is this place?"_ Thor asked, glancing up at the ceiling over the porch.

_"A safe house,"_ Tony replied, though it sounded more like a question.

_"Let's hope," _Clint said, glancing over his shoulder as he opened the front door, painted a dark green to match the shutters. He stepped inside without hesitation, like he'd been there many times before. Which he, of course, had, since this _was _his home. I felt jostled in Tony's hands as he clonked his way inside beside Thor.

_"Honey?" _Clint called as we walked (well, _I _didn't walk, but whatever, you get it) into a kitchen/living area. _"I'm home!" _I could laugh at the genarity of his statement.

A very beautiful, and very _pregnant, _woman rounded a corner in the kitchen, a shocked expression crossing her face briefly as she saw all the Avengers standing in her living room. _"I, uh, brought some company," Clint said a little awkwardly. __"Sorry I didn't call ahead." _He stepped forward, kissing his wife briefly before hugging her.

"This is an agent of some kind," Tony said with absolute surety.

"_Gentlemen_," Clint stated, turning back to his team, "_this __is Laura._"

_"I know all your names," _Laura chuckled. The Avengers stood in a line, all looking confused and awkward. Tony lifted his hand in greeting.

The faint sound of fast footsteps could be heard, and Clint muttered, "_Uh-oh, incoming_," before he was tackled by two kids. He held a little girl in his arms and ruffled the boy's hair with his other hand. _"Aww, hey buddy! How ya doing?"_

"_And these are," _Tony gestures with his finger, "..._smaller agents." _

_"Did you bring Aunty Nat?" _The small girl asked.

_"Why don't you hug her and find out?" _Natasha smiled as the little girl launched herself at her.

_"Sorry for barging in on you." _Steve nodded to Clint and Laura.

_"Yeah," _Tony started sarcastically, "_we would've called ahead, but we were too busy having no idea you existed."_

_"Yeah, well, Fury helped me set this up when I joined. Kept it out of SHIELD's files. I'd like to keep it that way." _Clint gave them a purposeful look, nodding to the tablet held in Tony's hands.

"Oh, you don't need to worry about me," I said, finally speaking up.

Clint squinted his eyes, though his lips twitched. "_You already knew, didn't you?"_

"Maybe," I replied, though they could tell I did.

_"Wait." _Laura cleared her throat. "_What's going on?"_

Clint coughed. "_That's umm, a long story."_

Clint's daughter tugged in Thor's cape. The big god of thunder glanced down, finding wide brown eyes gazing back at him. He looked away, lost in thoughts.

_"I figured this was a good place to lay low," _Clint was saying.

It was weird, watching a movie unfold before my eyes. It made me wonder at how long I'd be here. I'd never considered it before, didn't really have the time to. Now that I'd adjusted some more, I could sit back (well, not _really) _and think. I still had no idea how or why I was here, or how long I'd be here. It wasn't like I was important to the storyline, right? I didn't think I had the rights to change anything that happened, but just me _being _here changed things.

_Pietro. _

_No, _I scolded myself. I couldn't change something _that _important and big, right? _But what if you could? _I couldn't ignore the small voice whispering to me.

_"Hello? Axe?"_

If I'd been in a body, I would've jumped. But I couldn't do that, so I just sputtered, "I'm sorry, what?"

_"That's amazing to me," _I could hear Tony say. _"How she manages to _zone out_. Incredible."_

"Shut up." I then realized I'd missed a lot, and Tony and Steve were going to chop some wood.

_"As I was saying, where do you want me to... _put _you?" _Tony pursed his lips awkwardly.

"Oh, um." I thought about it. "Maybe by the window? So I can see you?"

_"Okay," _he drawled, almost as though he didn't believe me. Which, I mean, was smart on his behalf. I remembered that Steve was chopping wood, and well… _I _am _a teenage girl, after all. _

**AN: thanks so much for reading! I can't believe this has 35 follows now! I am extremely thankful for each one of you who has followed, favorited, or reviewed this! It's astounding and incredibly encouraging!**

**Also, who has seen Endgame??? I saw it Thursday night (_yes before the official release date! I can't believe it either!!) _and buddy am I shook. It was so awesome, so go watch it! 3,000/10 recommend it! (that was a reference haha)**

**Please leave a review and tell me how you liked it! I especially enjoyed writing that last bit, bc like, Chris Evans is blessed by the Lord so my OC knows it too lol. **

**Love you guys so much! See y'all next week!!**


	6. Chapter 6: The Plan is a Shirt?

Chapter 6: The Plan is a Shirt?

I watched Steve and Tony as they chopped wood, but I wasn't really paying attention to them. My mind strayed to my brief encounter with Pietro Maximoff. He was, by far, one of my favorite character in the MCU, and actually getting to _talk _to him… the fangirl in me screamed.

I argued with myself over what to do. I wanted to save him, man, did I want to. But what would it change? Anything at all? Everything?

Could I really handle watching him die? This time in real life?

_No. _

It was at that moment, as Steve ripped apart a large log in half with his hands, that I made my decision. I couldn't sit back and let him die, especially when I had the ability to _do _something.

_"Hey."_

I couldn't really turn to look, but I heard Clint approaching. "Hi," I replied distractedly.

He sat down in a chair near the window. _"What's going on in that brain of yours?" _

I consider not telling him, but then I realize some help might not be so bad. "A plan."

_"What _kind _of plan?"_

"It's not a bad one, if that's what you're worried about."

He laughed. _"Well, that's a relief. What is this plan about?"_

"Umm." _How do I tell him, "So this boy dies and he's really fast and the bad guy right now and I wanna save him"? _"It's about protecting someone," I finally settle on. _Close enough._

Clint hummed thoughtfully. _"Okay," _he finally said. _"What can I do to help?"_

I thought over that. How did I need him to help? What _was _my plan? I didn't know at the moment, so I told him, "I don't know right now, but I'll let you know when I figure something out."

_"All right," _he replied, standing up. _"Maybe you'll come up with something when you're done gawking at Steve."_

"I am _not_!"

xxxx

Everyone was busy, so I retreated into my mind, or coding, or however it worked. All I know is that I wasn't really aware of my surroundings, although I vaguely registered Tony setting me up on a kitchen table at some point.

I pondered over what I should do. Would Pietro living change that much? I didn't know why I was sent here, but something deep inside of me told me this was right. I didn't wake up in an alternate reality to just sit back and do nothing, especially when I had the ability to change something.

But what could I do, exactly?

I watched the movie just two days ago, so I recalled how Pietro sacrificed himself to save Clint and a young child. He was shot, so I wasn't sure exactly what I could do to prevent that from happening. I was merely a mind stuck in technology, so there wasn't much I could do to keep him from getting shot.

Unless I made something...

Before I'd woken up in the Avnegers Tower, I'd been preparing to attend the Pennsylvania College of Technology starting in the fall. I was smart, I knew that, but not Tony Stark or Bruce Banner smart.

Maybe I could design some sort of shield for Pietro. No, that would slow him down.

A bulletproof vest wouldn't likely have enough coverage.

Perhaps I could create some type of bulletproof material for him to wear. Something that would be lightweight, but indestructible.

Something like... it hit me then, and if I had the ability to gasp, that would have been the moment.

xxxx

"My contacts all say he's building something," Nick Fury said. "And with the amount of vibranium he's using, I'd say it's more than one thing."

_"Vibranium! That's it!"_

Everyone, even Natasha and Fury, jumped at the voice that boomed out of the tablet.

"What do you mean?" Steve asked, pushing off the wall to sit down near the tablet. "Does it have to do with Ultron's next move?"

"_Well, yes_," Axe replied, sounding as though she were containing excitement. "_But that's not what I'm talking about_. _Clint_!"

Clint frowned as he entered the kitchen, arms crossed. "What is it?

_"You know how you said to let you know when I knew?"_

Steve blinked in confusion as Clint nodded in understanding.

_"Well, I know. Vibranium. I need vibranium."_

"Ok." He nodded, hand tucked under his chin. "Where from?"

Axe paused to think about it. _"Where we just came from? There was some there, but Ultron might have taken the rest."_

"I'll go check it out," Clint said.

"Honey," Laura protested gently, pulling him aside. "You just got home, you can't go back there."

Clint sighed, placing his hands on her shoulders and rubbing soothing circles with his thumbs. "I know, but…" He glanced over his shoulder at the tablet that Axe was speaking out of. He couldn't see her but, she was young, full of life and hope. The parental instinct inside of him roared with the need to do anything he could to help and protect her. He turned back to his wife. "I have to try, for her."

Laura let out a despondent sigh, knowing there was no way to change his mind. "Just stay safe," she patted his chest, giving him a light kiss before he went upstairs to get ready.

"What do you need the vibranium for?" Steve asked.

The screen lit up, which, Steve assumed, indicated she was happy. _"To design a shirt."_

"The plan is a _shirt_?" Clint's shout could be heard from upstairs.

**AN: hey guys! Thanks for reading! This chapter is really short, and I am truly sorry for it and that I'm finally uploading this chapter so late in the day. This week has been really busy for me, so I couldn't find the time to write much :(**

**Thank you guys for all the follows, favorites, and reviews! It's amazing how many of you have read this and liked it! I truly appreciate each and every one of you! **

**See ya next week (hopefully with a longer chapter)!**


	7. Chapter 7: A Vision of Axelia

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything (unfortunately)! Just my OC **

**AN: this is a really long chapter, so consider it me making up for the short one last week :)**

Chapter 7: A Vision of Axelia

After Clint left, I told the remaining Avengers and Fury what I knew about Ultron's whereabouts and plans. They decided to wait until Clint returned before leaving, which gave me several hours to plan.

I was brainstorming ideas, which was different than how it used to be. I could actually _see _what I was envisioning, like a holographic image inside the blank, dark space of my brain. If there was a way I could somehow _weave _small pieces of vibranium throughout Pietro's uniform, it would sufficiently protect him.

But how to _do _that, exactly, was still a mystery to me.

I thought hard, trying to recall any Marvel characters who'd used vibranium in their suit.

Then it hit me.

Vibranium.

Suit.

Wakanda.

_Black Panther_.

Why hadn't I thought of it sooner? As of right now, T'Chaka, T'Challa's father, was still alive and king of Wakanda. But not for long, with the bombing that comes in a national council meeting during _Civil War. _

I forced myself to stop right there, before I could get any more ideas about saving people.

With only a few thoughts, I had the number to a secretary in Wakanda's government. It rung for several moments before a woman picked up. "Hello?"

"Hi, um yes, I'm with the Stark Foundation," I replied, trying my best to sound formal.

There was a pause on the other end of the line. "Oh. What does Mr. Stark need with a small country such as Wakanda?"

I could've rolled my eyes. Currently, Wakanda was hiding their advanced, and I mean _advanced, _technology under the guise of being another third-world African country.

"Well," I started, "I'm Mr. Stark's assistant and I've been informed of the astounding intelligence of the Wakandan princess, and, well, frankly, I was hoping I could have the honor of speaking to her? Mr. Stark is looking for bright, young minds to further develop by sponsoring a sort of school for academically gifted young adults."

I hated lying, I really did, but there was no other way I could get into contact with Princess Shuri. I'm sure that even in this year she was incredibly smart and had already started up designs on a different style for the Black Panther suit.

"Hold on one moment, please," said the accented Wakandan on the phone.

"Of course," I replied cheerily. _Please let this work. Please, please, please._

I waited for a few minutes, during which a relaxing tribal style music played on the phone. Funny. I bet _every _third-world country had their own wait music.

Finally, after I thought I couldn't take it any longer, there was noise on the other end of the line, some scuffling, and then a voice. "Hello? This is Shuri speaking."

"Hello, your highness," I said, trying not to geek out. I was talking to a Marvel princess. _Princess. _"I had a few–"

"Look, I am sorry for being rude, but I have to decline Mr. Starks–" she coughed "–_generous _offer. I have no need of a scholarship from him. Goodbye."

_Nononono. This couldn't be happening! I was __not going to lose my _one _chance to save Pietro Maximoff. _

"I know Wakanda has advanced technology," I blurted, trying desperately to keep her on the line.

There was a pause. "What did you say?" Her voice was low.

_Crap._

I just _had _to open my big mouth.

"I know you have a large amount of vibranium and you have far more advanced technology than you let on."

"How do you know that?"

"Ugh." I groaned, not wanting to explain my situation. I hardly understood it myself. "Let's just say, I came from an alternate universe and I know stuff."

"Okay," she said slowly. "And why have you called? I'm assuming you're not actually from the Stark Foundation."

"Well, um, no," I replied sheepishly, and she laughed. "But I do know him, and the rest of the Avengers. But that's not why I called. I need your help with a design."

"What _kind _of design?"

"A suit, made of vibranium. I know you have to have a good grasp on how best to utilize it for a better protected suit."

For a moment, Shuri didn't say anything, and I was afraid she'd hung up on me. Then I heard some rustling papers and a huff. "Well," she said, "I just so happened to have started brainstorming some new ideas for the Black Panther suit."

I could've cried in relief, but I couldn't actually _do _that, what with not actually having a body and all. "Oh, thank you so much!"

"Do not thank me, it a pleasure to finally have my brains recognized," she joked. She then grew serious as she said, "I just hope that whoever you are making this for is worthy of it."

All I could see was Pietro, lying on the ground, bullet holes all over his torso. He sacrificed himself. But not this time.

"Trust me," I told her. "He is."

xxxx

**(So I'm not going to write out the whole battle scene where they retrieve the body Ultron was trying to upload himself in, because, well... who wants to read all that, and you already know how that goes down. I'll sum it up in a sentence: Clint came back with the vibranium Axe needed, they left and got the body with the Mind Stone in it and brought it back to Avengers Tower.)**

Bruce suggested that they begin tissue degeneration and taking apart the body ultron had tried to implant himself in.

"Yeah, about that,"Tony said, looking at Bruce with a look in his eyes that the scientist had seen before.

Bruce shook his head. "No."

"You have to trust me."

"I kinda don't."

Tony stepped closer. "Our _ally_? The guy protecting the nuclear codes? I found him." Still watching Bruce, Tony clicked a button and an orange holographic image Bruce recognized appeared behind.

_"Hello, Dr. Banner," _said JARVIS.

"Ultron didn't go after JARVIS because he was angry. He attacked him because he was _scared_, of what he can do," Tony explained, impassioned. _Finally_ there was something he understood. Bruce still looked skeptical, so Tony continued, "So JARVIS went underground, scattered. He dumped all his memories, but not his protocols. He didn't even know he was _in _there till I pieced him together."

Bruce sighed, pinching his forehead before looking at Tony. "So… you want _me _to help you put JARVIS in this thing?"

"No, of course not," Tony denied, shaking his head. "I want to help _you _put JARVIS in this thing."

Bruce shook his head, suddenly remembering something. Or, rather, some_one_. "But what about Axe?"

Tony's face fell. Bruce was right. Axe was actually a person, a young one. She didn't deserve to be stuck inside his computers for the rest of her life. He sighed. "You're right. I–"

_"No!"_

Tony frowned at the alarmed tone in Axe's voice.

_"No, you can't put me in there."_

"But you weren't programmed like he was," Bruce tried to argue with her.

_"I know." _She sounded sad, and something tugged at Tony's heartstrings. _"But it can't be me."_

Bruce opened his mouth, but Tony shook his head and he fell silent. One look at the other and they both knew that this had to be done. _"It works," _Axe said then, interrupting their melancholy thoughts. _"By the way."_

Tony smiled, clapping his hands once. "Well, there you go."

"This is crazy."

"Yes, but we're mad scientists." Tony clapped Bruce on his shoulders. After a moment they both grinned. "Let's get started."

xxxx

"I'm gonna say this once," Steve said, stomping into the room.

"How about none-ce?" was Tony's quick reply.

Steve ignored him. "Shut it down."

"Nope, not gonna happen.

"You don't know what you're doing."

"And you do?" Bruce countered. He glanced at Wanda peeking out from behind Steve. "She's not in your head?"

"I know you're angry–" Wanda tried to reason.

Bruce interrupts her. "Oh, we're _way _past that. I could choke the life out of you and never change a shade."

"Banner," Steve nearly yelled, "after _everything _that's happened–"

"Doesn't compare to what's coming!" Tony shouted back.

"You don't know what's in there!" Wanda sounded desperate.

"This isn't a _game_, Stark!"

In a flash of blue, Pietro had gone through the room, flipped off switches, and unplugged the cradle. "Oh, go on," the Maximoff boy said, dropping the cord. "You were saying?"

A loud clap of thunder could be heard, along with the faintest squeal of excitement from seemingly everywhere.

In nearly slow motion, a bullet floated in the air in front of Pietro's face. He frowned, and then the glass beneath his feet shattered, and he dropped. When he landed, Clint was standing there, a foot on his thigh to keep him from moving. The archer smirked. "What? You didn't see that coming?"

Taking advantage of the momentary distraction, Tony ascended the small staircase, flipping switches back on. "I'm rerouting the upload."

Steve threw his shield in an effort to stop him, and then the fighting began. Tony and Steve hit each other so hard they both flew back into glass panels, shattering them. Bruce grabbed Wanda in a chokehold. "Go ahead," he told her. "Piss me off."

Wanda thrusted her elbows back, using her powers. Bruce doubled over, groaning as she threw him back again.

Thor came in through a broken window, landing on top of the cradle. He held his hammer skyward, and lightning shot down.

"Wait!" Bruce shouted, but Thor brought Mjilnor down on the box, letting the lightning make contact. He held it for a long moment, and Tony glanced at the screens.

**WARNING**

**POWER OVERLOAD**

When the lightning stopped, Thor stood up, staring down at the unresponsive body. Then the cradle exploded, sending Thor flying backwards.

A maroon colored body emerged from the cradle, balanced gracefully on the edge. He stood up and examined himself, as though he'd never seen his own arms and legs before. He looked up and, seeing Thor as a threat, charged towards him. He collided with the god of thunder, sending him sprawling back. He propelled forward, stopping just a mere foot from the glass wall. He stared at it as his face came into view.

Thor walked towards him, placing Mjilnor on a table. Steve jumped down, ready to fight, but Thor threw his hand out, stalling him. The maroon man turned and floated down next to Thor, a dark green-gray outfit appearing to cover him.

"I'm sorry," he said, and the voice sounded _exactly _like JARVIS. "That was… odd. Thank you." He nodded at Thor, and immediately an ear-shattering scream pierced the air.

Everyone turned back to the cradle, and what looked like red lightning shot from the sky. The scream sounded like a girl. Tony's eyes widened. "Axe!" he shouted, nearly pushing the Maximoff twins to floor in his haste to get to her. More bolts of red lightning shot from the sky, though they could tell it wasn't normal lightning. It shouldn't be colored.

Just as Tony reached the cradle, it exploded in a blast of blood red. Unlike before, this explosion sent everyone backwards, even the ones not in the room. A wave of heat could felt throughout New York.

The air cackled with power, something all of them could tell was magical. Tony coughed and sputtered, pushing himself on his elbows. Through the red-tinted smoke, he could make out a figure standing up. He blinked hard. "Who are you?" he demanded.

The person looked down at themselves slowly, before glancing towards him. He nearly collapsed when it spoke.

"Axe."

**AN: hellooooo my lovely readers!! Did you like the chapter?! Are you shook?! _I _am. And I wrote it. So yeah, this is the climax sorta thingy that I mentioned back a few chapters ago that I was super excited to get to. I was writing this chapter, and I looked and it had two thousand words and I wasn't even finished! **

**I sincerely hope you liked it :D**

**Also... ****Thank y'all so much for all the love! We're up to 47 followers! That's a lot of you guys!!!**

**ALSO!! My dear fellow fanfiction author, lozlol_, _has posted a new Avengers/Spider-Man story! It takes place after Endgame and contains spoilers, so if you have seen the movie I _highly _recommend reading it!! It's called "Where Do I Go Now That He's Gone" and the first chapter is up! Go check it out!! :D**

**Please drop a review and tell me how you're liking it so far!**


	8. Chapter 8: Can You Do that, Too?

**AN: omg you guys!! The _day _I posted the last chapter I hit 50 follows!! 50!!!! I told myself that once I hit fifty I'd post two chapters in a week, so here it is!! **

**Warning: this chapter contains spoilers from _Avengers: Infinity War_. Just saying bc idk if everyone has seen that or not :) **

Chapter 8: Can You Do that, Too?

Everything happened so fast. Thor came thundering in (to which I squealed excitedly, I will not lie), Vision was "born," and then all of a sudden there was pain.

_Everywhere. _

It felt like I was being burnt from the inside out. It wasn't just heat, it was power, alive and crackling.

I let out a guttural scream as I felt myself being torn from the technology that had become my home, like part of me was being ripped from the other half. I heard a shout and could tell it was Tony. Had I not been in excruciating agony I would've felt touched at his concern.

One moment there was only pain, red and hot, and the next it was gone.

It took seeing the Avengers scattered amongst broken glass on the floor to register that I was in a body. A _body_. I looked down, examining my arms and hands. It looked normal, surprisingly. My head spun.

"Who are you?" I heard Tony demand. I lifted my head slowly, attempting to blink away the fuzziness surrounding the edge of my vision.

"Axe," I replied, then dropped to the floor.

xxxx

For a moment, no one moved, just stared at the fallen body. Then Clint and Tony were racing to her side. Tony got to her first, and he was so shocked at her appearance that he momentarily forgot his fear.

Her hair was long and dark, but what looked like small red lightning bolts was all throughout it. Small bursts of crimson power danced through her curls, and for a second he was mesmerized.

"Oh my gosh," Clint said, and Tony snapped out of his trance. He shook his head as Clint reached down to feel a pulse. _Bum bump. Bump. _The archer grinned. She was still alive.

"What happened?" Steve asked as he walked over.

"Magic," Thor said, dusting himself off as he stood. "I saw something, a vision. She was in it." He nodded to Axe's unconscious body. "She's somehow tied to these stones–"

Axe lurched forward, coughing. "The Infinity Stones," she gasped.

"What?" Tony patted her back.

"The Infinity Stones, there's six," she told them, holding her head in her palm. "They each have a certain power. One is in Vision."

Steve's face scrunched up in confusion. "Vision?"

I pointed. "Him. He's not JARVIS, but he's not Ultron either, he's better. He's good."

"Are you, though?" Steve turned towards Vision, arms crossed. "Are you on our side?

Vision swallowed. "I don't think it's that simple."

"It better get real simple real soon," Clint said.

"I am on the side of life," Vision said in his soothing British lilt. "Ultron isn't. He will end it all."

"What's he waiting for?" questioned Tony as he helped Axe to her feet.

"You."

"Where?" asked Bruce.

"Sakovia," Clint said. "He's got Nat there, too."

There was a moment of silence. "It's true," Axe muttered, and Tony nodded. "He's not a monster, he's not like Ultron." She thought of Vision's death in _Infinity War_, how he sacrificed himself to save the rest of the universe. It was tragic, really, that everybody Wanda Maximoff has loved died. _But that's about to change_, Axe told herself.

"I don't want to kill Ultron," explained Vision. "He's unique… and he's in pain. But that pain will roll over the earth, so he _must _be destroyed–every form he's built, every trace of him on the net. We must act now, and not one of us can do it without the others," he continued ominously. Everyone glanced at each other warily and then to Vision, who lifted his hands to inspect them. "Maybe I _am _a monster. I don't think I'd know if _were _one. I'm not what you are, and not what you intended. So there may be no way to make you trust me–" he lifted Mjilnor effortlessly, sticking his hand out to give it to Thor. "–but we need to go."

Stunned into silence, Thor gingerly took his hammer, patting it awkwardly.

Clint turned to Axe, who was smiling at the scene. "Can you do that, too?"

xxxx

Steve gave us five minutes to get ready, and immediately I found the shirt design for Pietro I'd been working on since that morning. Shuri had told me her latest ideas on a new design for the Black Panther suit and I'd immediately gotten to work. I held it in my hands, feeling the stiff, white material. The vibranium in it shimmered in the light.

"How about a technology where the suit absorbs the impact?" I had suggested to her, and she'd gasped in excitement, telling me that she would start prototypes immediately.

I found Pietro next to some lockers beside Wanda. He lifted a a blue and gray shirt over his head, and I called out, "Wait!"

He turned to look at me strangely, lowering his arms. I jogged over to him and thrusted my hands out. "Wear this one instead," I told him, and he slowly put the other shirt back into the locker before taking the one out of my hands.

"Why?" He felt the material, peering at me through lowered eyelashes.

I swallowed thickly. "Because this one will protect you better than that one."

He pulled the shirt over his head, and the white and silver material fit over his torso perfectly. "How do you know that it will?"

I lifted my eyes from his chest. "Because I designed it." His lips twitched.

"_You _designed this?" I nodded. "For me?"

I shifted my feet uncomfortably. "Uh, yeah, I did."

Pietro smirked, eyes dancing playfully. "You are... familiar."

My eyes widened. "I _am_?"

"Yes." He stepped closer, pointing a finger at me. "You're the voice from that ship. The talkin piece of metal."

"Oh. _Oh_!" I slapped my forehead, feeling rather dumb. "Yeah, that was me."

"But you're not metal now," he teased, looking me up and down. Wanda cleared her throat from behind him and he jumped.

I stepped backwards awkwardly, ready to leave. "Good luck." I turned, hoping to avoid any more conversation. Talking to guys had a never been a strong suit of mine.

"What is your name?"

I paused, glancing over my shoulder. "Axelia."

**AN: thanks for reading! And I want to personally thank each of the 55 people that follow this. It means so much that people are reading and enjoying my writing!**

**Please leave a review and tell me how you liked it! :)**


	9. Chapter 9: Becoming An Avenger

**AN: hey guys, just wanted to say something real quick before you read this chapter. I am not the best at writing action/fight scenes, so I'm going ahead and apologizing if the way it's written sounds weird in action scenes. It's just not what I usually write, so I'm unused to it. **

**Ok now enjoy the chapter (it's a long one)!**

Chapter 9: Becoming An Avenger

"We're gonna have to start evacuating immediately," Steve told us as we rode in the hovercraft to Sakovia.

"I already called for an evacuation notice earlier," I said, chewing on my thumbnail. Bruce gently pushed my thumb away from my mouth, and I gave him a look.

"Sorry." He shrugged. "Bad habit."

I shook my head. "They should already be getting out of their homes." Steve nodded in thanks.

The rest of the ride was mostly silent, as everyone dreaded the fight approaching. I caught Pietro stealing glances at me every so often. Once he even _winked. _I didn't know how to process that.

I didn't have to, though, as we reached Sakovia. Steve leveled a serious stare at Tony. "You go to the city center, distract Ultron, give us more time to get the people out."

"Got it." With a meaningful look in my direction, Tony's Iron Man suit closed and he flew off the hover.

"You know the plan," Steve addressed us, ever the leader. "Get the people out, and take Ultron down. You see a robot, you kill it." We all nodded. "Then lets go."

xxxx

We're ushering the people of Sakovia to escape busses when the robots come. They levitated above us, shooting blue lasers that sends civilians screaming in panic.

"Axe, you're in charge of making everyone gets on one of these, got it?" Steve looked at me, and I nodded, helping a woman into a seat.

A few minutes later, the ground began to shake and crack. "Oh, no." Remembering Ultron's plan to lift the city, I pressed my hand to the earpiece Cap had given me on the way here. "Tony! He's going to raise the city up, then drop it. If it gets high enough it can cause total global destruction."

"Stark, you worry about bringing the city back down safely," said Steve over our intercoms. "The rest of us only have one job: tear these things apart. You get hurt, you hurt them back. You get killed… walk it off."

Had the circumstances been different, I would have jumped up and down from excitement. But at the moment I was carrying a little girl with a broken ankle onto one of the trans. Dust and rubble was stuck in her braided pigtails, and she whimpered softly into my neck. "I know, sweetie, I know," I soothed, rubbing her back in circular motions.

"I–" she hiccuped. "I want my momma." I felt her tears run down my shoulder.

"Where is she?" I looked around the seats full of scared civilians. "Is she in here?"

"No." She sniffed, rubbing her snotty nose. "She's in there." She pointed toawards an apartment building that was smoking. I took a deep breath, looking back down at the girl. Her ebony eyes stared up at me, shiny and brimming with tears. I felt my heart break for her. My mother died when I was six, a little older than her. I wouldn't let her go through the same thing I did.

As gently as I could, I set her on the closest open seat, yelling for a medic to tend to her. I squatted down to look her in the eyes. "I'm gonna find your mommy, ok? You just have to wait _right _here." She nodded bravely, and I smiled, setting off for the building.

The smoke was thick and gray, and I started coughing before I even reached the door. I held my shirt over my nose, blinking away the tears in my eyes. I searched the entire lobby, not seeing anyone, until a small cry caught my attention. It came from behind the desk, so I sprinted across the crumbling chunks of ceiling to find a woman cowering behind the counter. She had the same dark hair and eyes as the little girl, so I immediately offered my hand.

The woman shook her head, tears streaming down her soot-covered cheeks. She cried something in Russian, but I couldn't understand. I shook my outstretched, choking out, "Your daughter is safe!"

She must have understood some of what I said, because she took my hand. I pulled her up and started dragging her along to the entrance. I noticed she favored her left shoulder, so something must have fell and hurt it.

We burst out of the building, and I almost smiled that she was safe, but then I heard a crack. I looked up, and my heart dropped. The top half of the building was falling, and it was going to land on us. The woman at my side turned to me, and my decision was made. If only one of us could survive, it would be her, because I refused to let that little girl become an orphan.

I could hear the crackling as the walls fell above us. "You have to trust me, ok?" She nodded. With a surprising amount of strength I didn't know I possessed, I lifted the woman up and threw her to the side, where the building wasn't going to land.

I turned my eyes upward, seeing a large chunk of rubble descending. It was almost like everything slowed down. I felt my heart rate slow, and my breathing calm. I blinked slowly at the falling cement, and didn't feel regret. I'd come to do what is meant to. I'd saved that little girl, and her mother. Pietro had a vibranium shirt that surely would protect him.

A memory deep in the recesses of my mind flashed, and I was transported back to that day.

_The little girl's bottom lip stuck out and her eyes watered. "I don't want you to go, Mommy!" Her chin trembled. _

_Her mother smiled sadly, hands on her daughter's shoulders. "I know, sweetie. I don't want to go either."_

_"Then stay." The girl pulled on her mom's hand. _

_"I can't. I'm going to go serve, to protect people."_

_The girl cocked her head. "Protect who?"_

_"Our country, our family, your dad. You." She bopped the six year old on the nose, and was rewarded with a giggle. _

_"I wanna serve, too!"_

_The mother shook her head. "I'm sorry, baby, but you can't. Not right now."_

_The little girl stomped her foot. "But I want to protect people, too!" She crosses her arms, sniffling indignantly. _

_"Hey." She turned her face gently. "What's your name?"_

_"Axelia." muttered the girl, wiping her snotty nose. _

_Her mother smiled. "And you know _why _I named you that?" Axelia shook her head. "Because your name means 'the protector of mankind' in Greek." The girl smiled at that. "I knew you were gonna be brave and strong like your momma."_

_Axelia held up her arms in a flexing position. "I'm strong!" Her mother laughed. _

_"Yes, you are. Now I need you to be brave, ok?"_

_"Ok, Mommy." She wrapped her arms around her mother's neck, wiggling because her military uniform was itchy. _

_"I love you."_

_"I love you, too, Mommy."_

My mom had told me that I was destined for great things, said she just knew it. _You were right, Mom, _I thought, gazing up at the sky. The piece of rubble filled my vision. And then all I saw was blue.

One moment I was standing under the falling building, the next I was off the ground nearly twenty yards away. My head spun and my lips tugged downwards. _What happened? _I glanced up slowly, finding myself in the arms of Pietro Maximoff. My hands were wrapped around his neck, and I felt my cheeks redden.

He smirked. "What?" he teased. "You did not see that coming?"

I felt breathless, which was partially due to the almost dying thing a moment ago, but also because of the handsome superhero holding me in his arms. "No," I laughed breathily, patting his shoulder awkwardly. "No, I did not."

xxxx

After Pietro set me down, I found the woman and took her to her daughter. The tears were flowing as she embraced her little girl, and I felt my own eyes water.

"Hey." Pietro was still there, and he touched my elbow gently. I turned to face him, blinking back the tears. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine." I wasn't fine, not entirely, but that was okay. At his raised eyebrow I laughed. "Ok, maybe not, but just go do your superhero thing." I shooed him away and he laughed, taking off in a blur of blue and white.

Glancing to the far left, I saw Clint jump out of a building, shooting robots. Wanda was inside, deciding whether or not she would fight. Looking around and finding no more civilians in the way, I began sprinting over. I had to duck behind a smashed car as an Ultron robot shot in my direction. I pulled a small gun out of the holster on my hip, silently thanking Tony for being worried enough to supply me with a weapon.

Fumbling to turn the safety off, I pulled the trigger, blasting the robot's arm off. It loomed closer and I shot again, eyes squeezed shut. The robot clanked as it fell to the ground.

I didn't waste more time to stare it, running into the abandoned building, where Wanda was huddled against one of the walls.

"Wanda," I said, kneeling down in front of her. "C'mon, we need to help."

She shook her head. "I can't."

"Yes, you can." I pulled on her hand, willing her to stand up, but she would not budge.

"No, I'm not strong enough."

I paused. "Really? You think you're not strong enough?" She nodded feebly. With a huff, I bent down to look her square in the eyes. "Listen, I'm from a different world, where you, your brother, and all of the Avengers aren't real. You're just comic book characters." Her eyes widen and her jaw drops, but I plow on. "Yeah, it's weird and I don't understand it, but here's what I _do _understand: you are _so _strong, if not _the _strongest out of everyone here. You have so much power inside of you, and you can use that for good." I smile. "So go be an Avenger."

**AN: hey y'all, thank you for reading! This chapter was a roller coaster to write. I was planning it out, and I knew how I wanted it to end, but then I ended up writing a lot and got over two thousand words, then I got really stressed so I'm ending it here and the next chapter will be what I had planned for the ending of this one. **

**Phew ok that was a lot, sorry. Lol**

**Ok, a couple things to note. The first is, I didn't know when I was just gonna be like "oh yeah here's the meaning of Axelia's name" sooo here it is. When I first got the idea for this, I searched for probably an hour on google to find the right name. Axelia does, in fact, mean "the protector of mankind" in Greek. I wanted a name that meant what this story and character was about. This whole idea revolved around a girl who came to protect the Avengers (specifically Pietro Maximoff) so that's why I chose it. **

**And the second this is: we are nearing the end of this story! That's kind of sad, but very exciting for me, since I literally have never been able to finish a story haha. After this chapter, there will be three or four more chapters :D **

**Ok, this authors note is long enough so I'll finish now. Thank you to everyone who's favorited, followed, and reviewed. I truly appreciate each one of you!**

**Please leave a review, I really enjoy reading those! Oh, and definitely leave questions! Whether about the story or just about anything! (The ones about my fic have actually helped me in coming up with what will happen next!)**

**Ok, bye, see y'all next week!! :D *virtual hugs***


	10. Chapter 10: You Didn’t See That Coming?

**AN: this chapter is dedicated to my best friend, Amanda. Today is the two year anniversary of when we first met, so I'm giving her a special shoutout. :D (she actually helps me with writing so I also want to thank her lol)**

**Enjoy the chapter!**

Chapter 10: You Didn't See That Coming?

"The next wave is gonna hit soon," said Steve as he and Natasha helped civilians to safer spots. "What do you got, Stark?"

"Well, nothing great," Tony replied, somber. "Just a way to blow up the city. That will keep it from impacting the surface, if you can get it clear."

"I asked for a solution, not an escape plan," Steve told him sternly.

"Impact radius is getting bigger every second. We're gonna have to make a choice."

"Cap," Natasha said, moving to stand beside him, "these people are going nowhere. Stark finds a way to blow this rock–"

"Not until everyone's safe."

Natasha looked at him, puzzled. "Everyone up here versus _everyone _down there? That's no math there."

"We're not leaving this rock with one civilian on it."

"I didn't say we should leave." Steve turned to her then, and Natasha shrugged. "There's worse ways to go." She nodded to the scene in front of them. The sky was crystal blue and the clouds were white and fluffy. "Where else am I gonna get a view like this?"

"Glad you like the view, Romanoff," came Nick Fury's voice over their intercoms. "It's about to get better." Slowly, a SHIELD hovercarrier rose into view, and the Avengers smiled in relief. Pietro ran forward to get a better look. Grinning, he sprinted to Axe's side, and they shared a brief hug, Axe quickly stepping back as she flushed in embarrassment.

Pietro smiled. "So this is SHIELD?"

She coughed. "It's what SHIELD's supposed to be."

"This is not so bad."

Axe grinned.

xxxx

I was helping Clint and Wanda load people into one SHIELD's safety boats when Tony spoke over our intercoms. "Thor, I've got a plan."

"We're out of time," Thor replied. "They're coming for the Core."

"Rhodey, get the rest of the people on board. Axe, you help him."

I paused, scowling. "No, I'm coming with you."

"Axelia," Tony said in a warning tone. "It's too dangerous out there for you to fight."

I tapped my com, adjusting it so I spoke only to Tony. "Look, I appreciate you looking out for me, but I want to help. I _need _to help." He said nothing, and I tried again. "_Please_. Let me be an Avenger, just this once."

Just when I thought he was going to say no, I heard him sigh in defeat. "You sure know how to tug an old man's heartstrings. C'mon." I saw him flying towards me, and didn't realize what he was planning on doing until he picked me up. Panicked, I grabbed onto the iron suit and held on for dear life. He flew us to the city center and swiftly set me down on the floor.

"Here," said Tony, stretching something out towards me. I held my hand out hesitantly, and he dropped something metal in my palm. Immediately, it molded around my hand, and spread up to my elbow. The metal conformed to my hand and arm tightly, but it wasn't uncomfortable. There was a circle on the palm, and what looked like some extra gadgets along the sides. I looked down at it, astonished. He gave me my own Iron Man blaster. "Use it wisely, kid."

I smiled, then started shooting the first robot I saw. It went down in two shots, and I grinned, bouncing up and down excitedly. I probably looked stupid, but I didn't particularly care at that moment. _I was an Avenger._

"What's the drill?" Natasha asked, stepping up beside Tony and I. He pointed to the core, which looked as though it was buried deep into the ground and glowed a light blue.

"_This_ is the drill. If Ultron gets his hands on it, we lose."

A few more straggler robots came running towards us, and Thor took them down easily. "Is that the best you can do?" he yelled to Ultron, who raised his arms and hundreds more Ultron robots stepped forward.

Steve glanced at the god of thunder with an exasperated look. "You _had _to ask."

"This," said Ultron smugly, "is the best I can do." He gestured to all of us. "This is what I wanted: all of you against all of me. How can you _possible _hope to stop me?"

"Like the old man said." Tony nodded to Steve. "Together."

The Hulk roared, I grinned, and we began to fight. Now, when a robot shot a laser and nearly burnt my hair off, that made my smile drop. I charged at it, thrusting my hand with the iron blaster on it into its metal chest. I clenched my first and the robot exploded. I stepped back, a little stunned. "Well... didn't know it could do _that_."

"Watch out!" I heard Wanda yell, and I ducked. A robot fell to the ground beside me, a red mist slowly disappearing from it as in it's light flickered off. I looked up with wide eyes.

"Thanks," I breathed, and Wanda nodded, immediately turning back to dismember some more robots, without even touching them. It was _very _different watching it in _real life_ rather than on a screen.

_Focus! _I scolded myself.

My hair was loose, so when I turned to shoot a robot to my right, I felt my curls whip against something metal. When I looked back, a robot laid on the ground, dissolving into dust. "Huh." I shrugged. _Maybe Natasha has a special vaporizer gun_, I thought.

I glanced around, and it was only for a second, but it was if everything slowed down for just this small moment, so I could fully take it in. The Hulk was smashing three robots with one fist. Natasha was shooting these weird blue lasers from some sort of gun on both sides, casually as though she weren't fighting evil robots. Steve was midair in a flip, Tony was flying above us with Vision, Wanda was using her magic to combust the robots, and Pietro could be seen zooming through and destroying the Ultrons in his path.

It was _epic_.

The moment ended, though, and I was back to shooting anything but the superheroes around me. I saw Ultron slam Vision against the cathedral wall, before he was thrown back by the force of the Mind Stone in Vision's forehead. Thor and Tony also followed them out, blasting at Ultron with everything they had. The Hulk ran after them, punching Ultron so hard he flew out of sight.

"We gotta move out," Steve said, drawing my attention. "Even _I _can tell the air is getting thin. You guys get on the boats, I'll sweep for stragglers. I'll be right behind you."

"What about the Core?" Clint questioned.

"I'll protect it," said Wanda, and when Clint gave her a look she nodded. "It's my job."

The archer nodded. "Nat? Let's go. You too, Axe."

They took off, but I hesitated. On some weird instinct, I ran up the small steps surrounding the Core and wrapped Wanda in a hug. "Stay safe," I murmured, feeling her nod and a muffled "Okay."

I gave her a smile and ran off after Clint and Natasha.

I didn't really pay much attention to their conversation as Clint drove us to the safety boats. I'm pretty sure the topic was home renovation. I was too busy worrying about Pietro. So far, just about everything had happened exactly like the movie, and that's what worried me. If I could count on them saying the same _exact _same things, who's to say that his death could be prevented?

_No, _I thought to myself sternly. _You _have _to stay positive, Axelia. You've done everything you could._

I didn't realize I'd been staring off into space until fingers snapped in front of my face. I jumped.

He'd already dropped Natasha off where Bruce, in the form of his green alter ego, was smashing the last robots there angrily.

Clint helped me up from the car, watching me worriedly. We stepped into the safety boat slowly, both worn out from the fight. Neither of us were a god or super soldier, after all. "You good?" he asked me, and I nodded, giving him a tired smile.

A woman cried out a name, though I couldn't tell what it was. Clint and I both turned, and when I saw her my heart dropped. It was the mother of the boy who got left behind. The one Pietro died to save. "We were in the market," she choked in heavily accented English.

I glanced across the streets, seeing a small figure squirming. Clint sighed and made to move forward. I placed my hand on his arm, and he gave me a puzzled look. "Let me," I told him. When he began to protest, I shook my head. "No, just let me do this _one _thing. Please."

He looked at me for a long moment before nodding. "Stay safe."

I took off in the boy's direction, hoping to get him back before Ultron comes flying in, shooting lasers at the remaining people in the city. As soon as I was close, I strectched my hands out to the little boy to help him up. He gripped my neck tightly, and I held him securely in my arms. "It's okay, you're safe," I murmured into his dark hair.

I stood up, took two steps forward before the ground started to shake. I looked up, seeing a hover flying closer, shooting everything in its path. My heart dropped when I saw how far away we were from the safety boat. We wouldn't make it.

I set my jaw, determined. I held the boy, curled tight into a ball, in my arms and turned, so that his body was shielded by mine. _Please don't let Pietro die,_ I pray to anyone who's listening. _Please. Let it be me, I don't care. Just _not _him. _

I braced myself for the impact of the bullets, but they never came. I turned my head sharply, seeing a car behind us, propped up as a shield. My gaze drifted to Pietro, who did_ not _have bullet holes all in his shirt. The corners of his mouth twitched upwards. "You didn't see _that_ coming," he whispered before dropping to the ground.

**AN: hellooooo! I want to firstly apologize for finally getting this posted so late! I wanted to write, but I just _couldn't_. For some odd reason. And then Friday night I had this awful toothache, and then it lasted and I still low key am hurting, so I _really _did not feel like writing. **

**But here it is!**

**I really do hope you enjoyed it, and if you did please tell me in a review. :)**

**Just as a heads up, my uploads will not be weekly anymore, as I have plans for this summer and will not have my phone _at all. _I mean, that's not bad, it just means I have to finish this story before I leave. **

**So yea, I will be finishing this fic up within the next week (plus a few days)! **

**Ok, I'm done now haha**

**Please leave a review, follow, favorite, or whatever you want. **

**I will see y'all soon with the next chapter!! :D**


	11. Chapter 11: Reality

Chapter 11: Reality

Clint saw it happen.

He held his breath as Axe cradled the little boy in her arms, something _he _would have done in the same position. What happened next was almost too fast to tell, but he had sharp eyes. There was a reason he's called _Hawkeye_, after all.

Right before Ultron would've blown over a dozen bullets into Axe's small back, a car was thrown up on its side to shield them. Pietro Maximoff stood there, his white and silver shirt untouched.

Clint let out a breathy laugh. He was okay. _They both were. _

But then Pietro fell down.

Clint hadn't even noticed he'd sprinted across the rubble-filled streets until he was gently prying the small boy from Axe's grasp. She was staring at Pietro's fallen body, horror, and something that looked like guilt, written across her face. She scrambled to the young man's side, and Clint made sure the little boy was safely in the arms of his mother before returning to Axe and Pietro.

Steve came jogging up beside him. "Hey, what happen–" he cut off midsentence when he saw the Maximoff boy on the ground. _Oh no. _

Axe's hands frantically searched him, and she murmured to herself. "No, no, nonono." She reached towards his back and felt something wet. When she pulled her hand back, it was covered in blood. She moved behind Pietro to get a better look at him.

"This wasn't supposed to _happen_!" Steve and Clint shared a confused, worried look.

"_What _wasn't supposed to happen?" Steve asked gently, crouching down beside her. His own heart was heavy and he felt the sting of tears behind his eyes, but he pushed that away. Axe was in far worse shape than he.

"_This_!" She gestured to Pietro's back, where a bullet hole oozed blood. Her chest heaved with a sob, and her tears mixed with the blood on his back. "I did _everything _I could! And it still wasn't enough!"

Steve felt his heart break when her voice cracked on the word 'enough.' He didn't even notice how her hair began to glow and float until Clint made a choked, surprised sound behind him. Steve looked up and gasped. Axe's dark curls were shining with a dark red light that cackled and popped. He stood and backed away hastily.

In her upset state, Axelia didn't notice the change in her body. It wasn't normal, it was, well... _magical_. Her eyes were slowly morphing from a stormy blue to a dark, swirling red. Her crackling tendrils of hair loomed closer to Pietro's wound as she smacked her fist pathetically against his still warm side.

"It. Was. Supposed. To be. Me!" With each word, she delivered another thump to his side, each one getting softer until it just rested against him. She squeezed her eyes shut, but a lone tear slipped out.

"_Please_." Right as the whispered word left her lips, the single tear landed on the bloody hole on Pietro's back. Immediately, a sizzling sound could be heard, and Axe jumped back, startled.

Steve, Clint, and Axelia all watched in a strange mixture of horror, hope, and confusion as the blood around the bullet hole slowly dissolved. A crimson mist filled the wound, and they could see the muscle, skin, and blood veins begin to repare themselves. In less than thirty seconds the skin closed and it was as he'd never been shot.

But Pietro still hadn't moved.

Axe dropped to her knees, turning him over on his back. "Please, Pietro," she whispered. "Wake up." With a shuddering breath, she placed her palm on his chest, right over his heart.

_Bum bump. Bump. _

Her eyes widened.

Pietro sat up so quickly he nearly busted Axe's head with his own. His breathing was erratic and his vison was blurry. His eyes landed on the small brunette next to him. Her redrimmed eyes were wide and bloodshot as she stared at him in disbelief. He frowned. "What?"

Axe released a choked laugh before throwing her arms around his neck. Shocked, Pietro slowly encircled her waist with his own arms, shooting Clint a quizzical look. The archer just shrugged.

He could hear her mumbling something, but the words were muffled against his neck. "What was that?"

She leaned back, a small, watery smile on her lips. "It _worked_. You're not dead."

Still slightly confused, Pietro glances down at himself. "No, I don't think I am," he said playfully.

"I'm sorry," Steve said, gaining their attention, "but we need to get on that boat. _Now._" They all nodded.

Pietro pushed himself up and immediately bent to help Axe. She took his hand, and immediately stumbled, nearly falling over. "I'm sorry," she slurred, swaying on her feet. He wrapped an arm around her waist, looking at her with concern.

"Are you all right?"

"Yeah..." her head lolled to the side. "Jus' a little tired..." and then she fell into his side, limp as a ragdoll.

xxxx

**City center of Sakovia, 10 minutes earlier**

Pietro came running in, smashing a robot with his momentum. Wanda turned to him. "Get the people on the boats," she said.

"I'm not going to leave you here."

With barely moving her arm, Wanda shot her magic out to a robot on her right side and it fell into pieces. "I can handle this." Pietro shrugged, slightly impressed. "Come back for me once everyone is off, not before." Her brother nodded, beginning to walk off towards the safety boats. "You understand?"

"You know," Pietro said with a mischevious smile, "I'm twelve minutes older than you."

Wanada let out a disbelieving laugh. "Go." He started walking away, but she called out, "Pietro!"

He turned. "Keep her safe," she said and he frowned.

"Who?"

Wanda rolled her eyes. "That girl, Axe."

Brows furrowed, Pietro nodded. "But why?"

She had to think for a second about that. _Why did she suddenly feel protective over this girl she'd only known for a day? _"Because she's good," she finally settled on. "She cares about you, about everyone. I don't know why, but she's different."

The corners of his mouth quirked upwards a little. Giving his sister a small two-finger salute, he took off.

The Avengers has taken care of most of Ultron's robots, but she still had to destroy a few stragglers. She'd just combusted a robot from the inside out when she felt it happen. She didn't know if it was her magic or simply being a twin, but immediately she knew something was wrong.

Pain.

That was all she felt. Wanda fell to her knees, a guttural scream ripping from her throat. It hurt _everywhere_, it felt like she was being torn in two. Her heart being ripped out of her would have hurt less than this. Her whole body shook with a sob, and she didn't even register the robots surrounding her and the Core falling to the ground.

_She was losing Pietro. _

Wanda inhaled a deep breath.

Exhale. She released the grief and sadness in a huff.

Inhale. She wasn't sad anymore. No, she was _angry__._

She stood, and found Ultron in a train car. "Wanda," he croaked when he saw her. "If you stay here, you'll die."

She dropped to her knees beside him. "I just did," she spat. "And do you know how it felt?" Without warning, she thrust her hand into his chest. The robot gasped as her hands locked around his metallic core. She pulled it out, examining it for a moment before letting it drop. "It felt like that," she whispered.

xxxx

I heard voices, but they were muffled. I could feel myself being jostled around, as though someone were carrying me. I wanted to open my eyes, I tried to, but it didn't work. I felt the pull of unconsciousness stronger than the need to wake up.

Before I drifted off, I could've sworn I heard someone whispering in my ear. "Stay with me, Axe. _Please_."

When my eyes finally opened again, the first thing I registered that whatever I was on, it was uncomfortable. It felt like my Granny's couch...

I shot up like a lightning bolt, quickly taking in the room around me. Early morning light streamed through half-shut curtains, and the distinct smell of bacon was in the air. The fabric beneath my fingers was threadbare and itchy. I knew this place anywhere.

I was at my Granny's house.

The last thing I remember was Pietro with a bullet hole in his back. I blinked back tears. _Is he okay? Did he survive?_

_Wait. _

If I was in my grandmother's living room, had my journey with the Avengers ever _happened_?

My heart sped up as I scrambled off the couch. _Nononono, _I thought desperately. _Please let it have been real._

"Lia?"

I paused. Turned around. Held back a gasp.

"Hi, Granny," I said uneasily.

"You all right there?" Granny asked, concerned. "You look like you've seen a ghost, dear." She laughed.

"I'm sorry, I just…" I held a hand to my forehead. "What happened?"

"I'm sorry?"

"I said, what happened?"

"You need to wake up."

Brows furrowed, I looked up. Granny still looked like Granny. With short white curls and in her nightgown. But her voice sounded off, distorted. Something was off.

"What?" It came out as a whisper.

She walked closer, till she was only a foot in front of me. "You need to wake up, Axe." The voice wasn't hers, so I _knew _something was _very _off. Granny set her hands on my shoulders. "Wake up, Axe. Please. Wake up for me." It was a male's voice, deep and accented.

She shook me by my shoulders. "Wake up!"

I gasped.

Pietro was sitting above me, hands on my shoulders. "Axe!" He smiled when I opened my eyes, but they immediately closed because there was a harsh, blinding light above me. "Hey, look at me."

I groaned, peeking at him with one eye. I felt my lips stretch into a tired smile and I placed my hand on his cheek. "It worked," I mumbled, though it probably sounded like _ifworfed. _"You're okay..." and then I passed out.

**AN: hey y'all! Here's chapter 11!! I hope you liked it! **

**I really didn't know how I was going to make Axe like once she was in a body, so reviews asking whether she had powers or if her body was synthetic or more realistic really had me thinking. And those reviews spurred me to write my OC in this way. **

**The Reality Stone isn't necessarily _in _her (like it is Vision), but it's a _part _of her. She has some powers because of it, and I've been kind of hinting at it in the past few chapters if you've noticed ;)**

**The next chapter will be the last! Wow! My best friend, Amanda, that I mentioned in the last chapter is honestly really really sad that it's ending haha. I'm sad too, but I'm honestly so proud that I've finished a fanfic finally that the sadness hasn't kicked in yet LOL.**

**I'm hoping to get the next chapter up sometime in the next few days! :D**


	12. Chapter 12: Inevitable

Chapter 12: Inevitable

"She's not waking up," said Pietro worriedly, glancing up from Axe's unresponsive form. "Why isn't she waking up?"

"I don't know, kid," Clint muttered, chewing on his thumbnail as he paced.

When Axe passed out, Steve had carried her to SHIELD's helicarrier. Pietro had protested to having her carried by someone else, but Steve had just firmly told him, "You nearly died, son. Let me."

Once the were aboard the helicarrier, Clint had led them to the infirmary, finding the best doctor on board to check her out. Once he'd looked her over, the doctor had told them that there was nothing wrong physically, other than a few scrapes and bruises. His guess was that she'd exhausted herself. So she'd need to sleep, and for a while.

They still worried, though.

The other Avengers had come and gone, but Pietro only half paid them any attention. He heard the Black Widow say that the Hulk had flown off in a jet, with stealth mode on, which made it impossible to track the green rage monster. At any other time that information would have worried him, but he'd barely blinked at the news.

Tony had stayed for a few hours, watching the young woman with an unreadable expression. If you looked closely, though, you could see the worry and sadness in his eyes. It was probably about four in the morning when Tony finally left, muttering about getting a bagel and some sleep.

That brought them to now. With Clint pacing as Pietro sat on an uncomfortable metal chair by her bed, stubbornly refusing to leave. "Not until I know she's okay," he'd told them, and they left it at that. Tony had seen the way the boy had looked at Axelia, he knew he wasn't _just _concerned about her wellbeing, but he let it slide. _For now. _

"All right," announced Clint, startling Pietro, who'd been counting the dots on the sheet covering Axe's cot. "It's six o'clock, I'm getting some breakfast. You want any?" Pietro shook his head, and Clint left, deciding he'd bring something back when he was finished.

Once he was alone, Pietro allowed himself to release a shuddering breath, grasping Axelia's hand as he sat on the edge of her cot. "Wake up," he murmured. "_Please. _Wake up." He felt awful. For some reason, he felt responsible for what had happened to her. If she hadn't have healed him, as he'd been informed by Steve and Clint she had done, then she wouldn't have passed out, and she would be awake. He didn't know what he'd do if she never woke up.

As he watched, he saw her chest start moving up and down rapidly. Her forehead was slick with sweat as she breathed heavily. He placed his hands on her shoulders, shaking slightly. "Wake up, Axe. Please. Wake up for me," he said desperately, hating to see her in such a state. Whatever was going on in her head, it wasn't good.

She gasped, eyes flowing open. He grinned, leaning over her. "Axe!" Her eyes closed a second after they opened, and he frowned. "Hey, look at me."

Her right eye opened a little, and when she focused on him, she smiled tiredly, placing her palm against his stubbled cheek weakly. "_Ifworfed_," she mumbled. "You're okay..."

And then she passed out again.

Pietro sat there, brows furrowed and jaw hanging open slightly. "Uhh." He didn't know what to do, so he looked around desperately, as though an answer had been hiding in plain sight.

But, obviously, there was no answer, so he just looked back to her unconscious body helplessly. He would get the doctor, but he didn't want to leave her alone. So he stayed, sitting beside her bed as he fought to keep his eyes open.

And that was how Clint found the young mutant, slumped over in exhaustion.

xxxx

When I opened my eyes again, I knew for sure that I wasn't in my Granny's living room. I was lying on something comfortable and warm, and I could feel somebody holding my right hand. I blinked a few times, taking in the room around me. It was pretty standard, a desk, chair, and closet. The wall across from me was a window from the top to bottom, so I could see a large expanse of bright green grass stretching out for at least a few acres.

With a sleepy groan, I glanced over and saw Pietro Maximoff asleep, one hand cradling his face while the other encased mine. The skin on his hands was rough, and mine felt odd inside of his.

Something I'd noticed since I finally had a body in the MCU was my skin. It was different.

I wasn't red, like Vision. I looked like another normal white teenage girl. But it felt strange, almost rubbery. I guess it made sense, since I wasn't technically human. I stared at my left hand, wishing it looked like how it used to, with freckles and wrinkles. I just wanted to feel _normal_.

As I watched, my skin slowly morphed from smooth and rubbery to wrinkled and covered in small brown dots. I let out a surprised yelp. The noise must have woken Pietro, because the next thing I knew he was sitting up, looking around the room for any threat.

His eyes finally settled on me, frowning as he saw my wide eyes and chest rising and falling rapidly. "What is it?"

I couldn't get a word out, so I merely held my hand up. He inspected it, brows tugging together. "I… I don't see anything wrong with it."

"She has begun to cultivate her powers," said Vision, floating in through the wall on the other side of the room. Pietro jumped, cursing.

"Stop _doing _that," he muttered, rubbing the back of his neck.

I frowned. "My _powers_?" I asked, puzzled.

"Yes." Vision hummed, landing on the floor quietly. "There is great power inside of you." At my nervous look, he continued, "But it is nothing to fear. It is a part of you, like this Stone is me." He gestured to the yellow gem on his forehead.

"The Mind Stone," I breathed.

"Exactly. I can see the power of the Reality Stone in you. It is how you saved Pietro."

I turned slowly to look at the young man sitting beside me. He gave me a hesitant smile and I grinned. "That's… kind of crazy. I can't believe I did it."

"Well, believe it." Wanda entered the room (through _the door, _like a _normal person_). She gave me a small smile. "Thank you," she told me sincerely, and I nodded.

"You know," said Peitro, glancing between his sister and I. "You two are kind of similar. You both have red magic, and Axe has the red glowy hair." Wanda laughed, but I frowned in confusion.

"My hair is _what _color?!"

xxxx

I hummed happily, taking another bite out of my turkey and cheese sandwich. I sat on a bench beside Pietro outside of the Avengers' new facility. It felt _wonderful_. The sun was shining, and there was a cool breeze. I could hear the thump of agents-in-training as they made their laps around the compound. For a small moment, it felt normal.

"I never told you thank you," Pietro spoke up suddenly. I turned to him, but he was staring straight ahead. "For what you did," he explained, nodding his head a little.

I swallowed the bite of my sandwich, setting it down on my plate. "You don't have to thank me," I told him quietly, glancing down at my hands. They didn't feel fake or synthetic, but, somehow, that almost felt worse.

"Yes, I do." He turned to me then, and I watched him out of the corner of my eye. "I nearly died, Axe. _Died. _I wouldn't be here if you hadn't been there."

I felt my cheeks warm, and I tucked my hair behind my ear awkwardly. "'s no big deal..." I mumbled under my breath, which was wasn't true at _all. _For some reason I was still unaware of, I'd been brought into this universe for a _reason_. I was fairly certain this was _not _what my mom had in mind when she said she knew I'd do great things one day. She probably thought I'd be a great police officer or soldier one day, not some weird being with magical powers in an alternate universe.

I could feel Pietro's eyes burning a hole in the side of my face, so I gathered my courage and looked him square in the eye. The corners of his mouth quirked up. "Thank you," he said simply.

I nodded. "You are very welcome." For a moment we just stared at each other, and then we started laughing.

_This. _

This was normal, this was _good_. We were just a boy and girl talking, laughing, having a good time. Sure, the conversation wasn't an ordinary topic, but that was fine. As I looked into Pietro's cerulean eyes, filled with laughter, I finally felt like everything was okay. If my mom were to see me now, I think she would have been proud, not just because of what I'd done, but because of the family I had found. A week before I would have said the only family I had was my Granny and Aunt Marie.

But now, I had all of these people, all these _superheroes_, that cared about me. I was an Avenger.

And it was then that I came to the conclusion: maybe being a little different wasn't _so _bad.

I spotted Tony walking outside with Steve and Thor. "Excuse me for a minute," I said, and Pietro smiled, patting my shoulder before walking back inside, probably to find some food. That boy could _eat_, it was insane.

I jogged over to the group of men, smiling as I stood beside Tony. He looked at me and smirked. "Well, look who finally woke up." I rolled my eyes as he slung an arm around my shoulders and squeezed.

"You leaving?" I asked Thor, who nodded in affirmation. I thought of something, more like _someone_, then. "Hey, how's your brother doing?"

Thor furrowed his brows. "Loki is... he's dead."

My eyes widened. "Oh, yeah… that's right."

Thor was still frowning in confusion, and I could feel Steve and Tony's puzzled stares. I coughed and, in an effort to clear up the awkwardness, said, "I forgot… about that. I'm sorry." Thor nodded and I nearly sighed in relief.

The god of thunder patted his hammer awkwardly. "Yes, well… I uh, I better be off." He gave each of us a nod, and smiled before thrusting Mjilnor in the air. He disappeared, leaving an intricate design on the grass.

"That guy has _no _regard for lawn maintenance," Tony commented, hands shoved in his pockets.

Steve turned to me, an amused half smile on his face. "Loki's not dead, is he?"

"Uhh." I didn't really want to _lie_. Especially not to _Captain freaking America_. So I merely gave him a hesitant smile and shrug, Tony laughing at my reaction.

Steve smiled, but then he turned serious. "Is there anything else you think is important to let us know about?"

Suddenly, the grass at my feet was ten times more interesting than looking them in the eye. I wrung my hands nervously. _How much should I tell them? _I was afraid saving Pietro had been too much, so what would happen if I warned them of future events? Would it change anything at all?

"Hey, it's okay." Tony patted my arm reassuringly, and I finally looked up, my decision made. Surely a warning couldn't be too much.

I took a deep breath, meeting their eyes.

"His name is Thanos."

**AN: hi guys!!! Gosh, this is it. The last chapter. **

**Crazy, huh? **

**I won't be all sappy and stuff, at least not in this one. I'll be posting a thingy right after this, which will explain some stuff, have all the 'thank you's and my plans for my next story :D**

**I really hope you have enjoyed this story as much as I have enjoyed writing it. It has come to mean so much to me, and it's become so much bigger and better than I ever _dreamed _of it being. It started out as merely an idea I'd had while watching the movie. **

**:( I'm sorry this has been a rather short fanfiction. ****I would like to be one of those really good fanfic authors that have long chapters and lots of them, but I just couldn't do that with this story. And that's okay :)**

**Ah, I'm getting sad now. **

**Okay, enough of that. *deep breath***

**I love y'all so much and can't wait to post more fanfics from all sorts of different fandoms!**


	13. Final Author’s Note and Announcement

Hey guys, I want to sincerely thank each and every one of you. For following, favoriting, reviewing, and even if you read it without doing any of that. It's meant so much that a lot of people read and like my work. Y'all mean so much to me :D

I didn't think I'd have much of a commitment to this story, I just mainly wanted to post something finally. But I've grown so attached to this fic and my OC.

And I have you guys to thank for that.

Without the support and love, I wouldn't have continued this and be as confident as a writer that I am now because of it.

I would like to note a couple of little things about this fic.

First thing is this: if you paid attention, _all the way back _in chapter 1, I wrote that Axe had watched Age of Ultron for the 11th time. If you're a big Marvel fan like me, then you know that the number 12 is kind of a running joke in the MCU. (Tony told Pepper she got 12% of the credit, Pietro is 12 minutes older than Wanda). Well, I thought it was a fun little thing to put in there, since the events of this fic would be the 12th time watching it for Axelia.

Or, should I say, _living _it.

Second thing, I did not anticipate on making the relationship between Axe and Tony the type of father-daughter complex it turned into. I originally wanted her to be like that with Clint, and for her and Tony to kind of be, like, I don't know... rivals or something? Like being sarcastic and making fun of each other. But, it just kind of naturally flowed the other way, and I'm okay with that :) I hope you are too.

Now, I'd like to thank two of my best friends: Amanda and Sarah. They have been the ones supporting me through this whole thing, even encouraging me to post what I've written _last year_.

And now I've finally done it.

Without their support and help, I can tell you _for sure _I would not be posting this right now.

And I want to thank every person reading this, whether I know you read it or not. Just the fact that you clicked because the summary seemed intriguing is awesome to me. I've thoroughly enjoyed getting every notification that someone has followed or favorited or reviewed (those are my favorite)!

I'm not ready to be done with Axe and this story for sure, so if you have an idea for a oneshot or a scene between Axelia and the other Avengers, please tell me in a review and I will try to write it and post it!! :D

And finally, let me tell you about what I have coming up for future stories.

I have this Maze Runner fanfic that I've been working on for I don't even know how long. _A really long time, my dudes. _

And I cannot wait to post it!

But I actually _do _have to wait /

See, I will be working at a camp this summer for 4 weeks, and it's up in the mountains where there's no cell service, no WiFi, and electronics aren't even _allowed. _Now, I'm happy to get away and spend my summer at camp, but I just wanted to let y'all know that once it's over in July, I will start posting the Maze Runner fic :)

Before I finish, a word from my best friend:

_"What's up fam a lam_

_I am the only one cursed with the knowledge that is Mary's writings. Stay tuned for what my pal has in store_

_YEET"_

_~_manda

**And so I end my final authors note with this. **

**Thanks for coming along on this journey with me. I won't forget it. **

**I love all of you 3000.**


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